


A returned favour

by orphan_account



Category: Dangan Ronpa - All Media Types, Dangan Ronpa 3: The End of 希望ヶ峰学園 | The End of Kibougamine Gakuen | End of Hope's Peak High School, Dangan Ronpa: Another Episode, Dangan Ronpa: Trigger Happy Havoc
Genre: Angst, F/M, Fluff, Friends to Lovers, Hurt/Comfort, Just some guys being dudes, Kinda, M/M, Mutual Pining, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Rarepair, Romance, Slow Burn, Togakure - Freeform, confusing romantic feelings with friendship, hiro being a himbo, morosexual AND tsundere togami, roomate au
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-03-04
Updated: 2020-04-04
Packaged: 2021-02-28 17:08:05
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 7,063
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23010724
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: When Hiro finds himself out of a place to stay, a certain bitter someone steps in to help. While living in such close proximity to each other, the two start to develop new and confusing feelings towards the other.
Relationships: Hagakure Yasuhiro/Togami Byakuya, Kirigiri Kyoko/Naegi Makoto
Comments: 15
Kudos: 94





	1. Chapter 1

When Makoto walked into work that morning, rubbing his eyes from a sub-par night’s rest, he did not expect to find his friend sleeping on the coffee-stained couch in the break-room. And by the looks of it, he was doing more than just staying the night. Takeout boxes lay strewn over the table, a toothbrush and toothpaste had been left next to the sink, and a suitcase of clothes was open in the middle of the floor. Knocking on the door frame, Makoto spoke gently. “Uhh, Hiro?”

The body draped over the couch gave a snort, and in a feral waving of the arms and legs, fell onto the floor. He looked up at the figure in the doorway before realising who it was. “Makoto! What’s up!”

“Are you living...in the break room? What happened to your apartment?” Makoto gave a hesitant look around the room. Hiro clambered to his feet, leaving his blanket on the floor. “Well, it’s actually a pretty funny story. So, it began a week ago, remember? We were in my room, just vibing, y’know, and I said to you ‘dude, I’m, like, 110% percent sure my landlord is a lizard’, and then-”

“Um, Hiro, how does that lead to your living in the break-room?”

“Fine, I’ll get to the point, but you're the one missing out!” Hiro picked up a pizza box laying on the table, and began eating a slice. “So, after I explained to you my whole theory about the aliens, and how they use landlords as their hosts, my rent went up! So, the only possibility is...”

“You can’t afford to live there anymore?” Makoto suggested, while trying to tidy up.

“What? No!” Hiro swallowed a mouth full of ‘za. “Well, yes, but more importantly...” Hiro ran back over to the couch to grab a tattered notebook. “My landlord heard that I knew his secret! And he wanted to silence me in a sneaky way!”

“...right,” Makoto said, while lowering the notebook Hiro was enthusiastically pointing at. “But you still don’t have anywhere to live! Just come to mine for now, I live close, and I’ll clean this place up, okay?”

“Wow, thanks, Makoto!” Hiro said in a completely genuine tone, which was something only he could accomplish. As Makoto drove back to his, he pondered the fate of Yasuhiro Hagakure.

Later that day, after finishing his main tasks, Makoto walked over to Hiro’s desk, and took a seat. Hiro desk, much like his personality, was quite disorganised. Papers and files were stacked in precarious piles, while deconstructed ball-point pens decorated the area around his keyboard. Sticky note with multiple versions of words spelt wrong brought the whole ensemble together.

“So, I’ve been thinking, and-uuuh.” Makoto’s eyes drifted to the monitor, which was currently displaying massage chairs. “Shouldn’t we focus on getting you somewhere to live, before buying furniture?”

Hiro swivelled around in his chair, overextending, and having to grab the edge of the desk to face Makoto.

“I already have a place to live, Makoto,” he inched his face closer, while his smile widened. “Yours!”

Makoto didn’t react at first because surely, surely, he was joking...right? As Hiro returned to his work, and started counting on his fingers, Makoto realised, Hiro was indeed, not joking. 

“Hiro, you can’t move in with me! I don’t have an extra room! And when Kyoko comes back, it’ll be even more crowded! Just let me help you find a new apartment,” Makoto protested. “Please?”

Hiro looked to actually be in thought, pondering Makoto’s question-“Nope!”

“But-”

“I’ll just find a comfortable dumpster!” Hiro exclaimed, holding his head high.

“You are not sleeping in a dumpster.”

From the next desk over, the pair heard the sound of fancy shoes walking towards them.

“I suppose I can be of some assistance, if you insist,” Byakuya grumbled as he walked up to Hiro’s desk. “I do have an extra room in my apartment.”

Hiro perked up. Usually it would take ages of begging for Byakuya to do something as nice as offer a room to him.

“Wait, really?” He said, standing up, and pushing his desk chair backwards.

“Yes, really. Have you gone deaf?” Byakuya leaned on the desk, and started reading one of the many scattered files on the desk. “You spelled ‘mission’ wrong,”

“Togamins!” Hiro cheered, while wrapping his arms around the blond’s waist.

“I told you not to call me that. And let go of me!” Byakuya yelped as he clawed at Hiro’s arms, while trying to keep the file uncreased. Makoto looked at the two. 

“Thanks for helping out, Byakuya. I was worried Hiro was gonna have to sleep on my couch!”

“Well, I am-obligated to help, being a-member of Future Foundation, and-whatnot,” Byakuya replied, while taking breaths to try worm out of the iron grip that was Hiro’s hugs. “I will not help you move out, however.”

“Yeah, that reminds me, where is all of your other stuff?” Makoto asked.

“Oh, I tried to carry as much as I could, but it was kinda heavy, so I just put it in a safe place.” Byakuya had freed himself, but Hiro didn’t seem too bothered.

“Oh no, don’t tell me that’s all of your stuff in the parking lot.” Byakuya sneered.

“Whose else’s would it be!” Hiro said, making his way to the stairs.

“You bought ANOTHER mini-trampoline?” Byakuya exclaimed, following him.

“One can never have too many!”

“One most certainly can!”

The two’s conversation continued in the same matter until they were out of earshot. Makoto smiled fondly. If Byakuya knew even half of Hiro’s purchases, he’d probably faint. At least Hiro wasn’t going to be living in a dumpster. Where he was going was much better.

“I thought you weren’t going to help me move?”

“Allowing you to put your belongings in my car hardly counts as ‘helping,” Byakuya grimaced at the upcoming traffic. He usually left before the rush started, but after waiting for Hiro to load as many things in, he was running a bit late. He drummed his fingers on the steering wheel, and looked over to the man holding crumpled boxes on his lap, one of which was labelled ‘cool toothbrushes’.

“Thanks for helping anyway. I can’t believe I’ve never been to your mansion before!” Hiro tried to peek around to boxes to get a view.

“I don’t live in a mansion. I have an apartment.”

“Whoa! Even cooler! A penthouse!” Hiro said, his mind probably whizzing with ideas of wealth and status.

Byakuya rolled his eyes “Hiro, I don’t live in a penthouse, either. Someone was already occupying it.” 

His eyes lowered down to down to the steering wheel. “And I feel as if forcibly evicting him doesn’t align with the morals of Future Foundation.”

This was true, but even if he wanted to, he probably didn’t have the power to evict anyone. His whole family was gone, dead. It had been an...humbling experience, to say the least.

“Why were you living in the break-room in the first place?” Byakuya asked, as the traffic condensed.  
“Did your rent go up?”

“Oh, it’s a great story actually, and-” He began, eyes lighting up.

“Is this another one of your conspiracy theories?” Byakuya questioned, eyes flitting over to the man.  
“They’re not conspiracies! I prefer the term ‘scientific hypotheses’.” Hiro’s brow furrowed, as he tried to keep the boxes steady.

“The one time you remember what a hypothesis is, and it’s now...” Byakuya sighed. The traffic definitely was not getting better. He shook his head. “Whatever, explain it to me. I need some background noise, anyway.”

Hiro grinned. “Ok, so, about a week ago I was just chilling with Makoto, and I said to him ‘dude, I’m, like, 110% percent sure my landlord is a lizard’, so then...”

Hiro continued explaining his convoluted theory to Byakuya for the rest of the car ride, going into his thoughts about the aliens, and how through rent, they slowly suck your essence, making landlords perfect for their plan. And even though Byakuya said it was just background noise, he was actually half-listening. Not believing any of it, but listening.

Around an hour later, they arrived at Byakuya’s building. A tall building, taller than the others around it. It looked almost European in design, different from the sleek, and modern designs of the rest of the city. It looked fancy, but not lavishly fancy. Upper-upper-middle class. Byakuya pulled into the parking lot, parking in his designated spot.

“You can use the elevator to bring your things up, and I’ll give you my key later on.” Byakuya pressed the elevator button. “I’m not doing anything else.”

Hiro didn’t seem to be listening. “Even the trash in the parking lot is fancy! These wrappers are from the super rich grocery store!”

“Hiro, get away from the trash, or I’m going to leave you here.” Byakuya was on the elevator, finger hovering over the ‘close door' button.

“No, no! I’m coming!” Hiro came lumbering along, trying to carry as much of his stuff as he could, even dropping some on the way. Byakuya sighed. He often pondered over how the other man’s brain worked  
The two rode the elevator up to the ninth floor, Hiro performing a balancing act with all of his questionable purchases. When they got to Byakuya’s door, he stopped.

“This is my apartment.” He said in a steady cadence. “Remember, it’s on the ninth floor, number 89. I’m not going to tell you this again.” 

“Come on, man! Have a little more faith in me!” Hiro said.

“You’ve forgotten the day of the week at least 10 times this month.” 

“Maybe I am a little forgetful.” Hiro grinned at the other. 

As Byakuya opened the door, Hiro rushed in to see inside, scuffing his sandals off in the process. “Holy shit! This place is so nice!” 

Hiro was gazing around the apartment, trying to notice every detail. The room he had just walked into seemed to be a huge room, accommodating for a kitchen, a dining table, and the living room. But it was pretty roomy, more so than Hiro had ever seen. Bookshelves lined the walls, crammed with books that Hiro couldn’t understand half of the words written in them. Tall windows opposite the shelves let the afternoon sun illuminate the room. He kept looking around, admiring the polished kitchen counter, the glass coffee table, and the wall mounted television. “You even have a fireplace!” 

He ran to the fireplace, weaving through the furniture, and dropped to his knees. “Wow…” 

“You can admire the fireplace in your own time, but I need to show you around.” Byakuya groaned. 

“Oh, oh, right!” Hiro leapt to his feet to follow Byakuya down a hallway, which was decorated with more bookshelves, and painting of beautiful European landscape and buildings.

“So, this is my bedroom, you’ll have to knock before you enter, this is the bathroom you will be using, and this-” As they walked alongside the dark painted walls, Byakuya gestured to stained wood doors, embellished with gold coloured handles, but stopped in front of one. “This is your room.” 

Byakuya turned the handle and pushed open the door, revealing the nicest bedroom Hiro had ever seen in person. 

A double bed sat in the middle, decorated with a velvet headrest, a silky blanket, and plush looking pillows. The bedside table had designs adorned around the drawers, and the lamp had ornate patterns covering it. The curtains draped over the windows were a rich navy colour. Through the windows, the late afternoon sun blanketed everything in a golden light. 

“This is...my room?” 

Byakuya raised an eyebrow. “Yes? I thought I had made that quite clear. And close your mouth, you’re going to catch flies.” 

Hiro dropped the boxes he was holding, leaving Spider-Man toothbrushes and something called ‘Ghost Repellent’. Jumping on to the lush fabrics on the bed felt like a dream. It might even be better than the time he first watched a movie in the cinema. Hiro rubbed his hands over the blanket, and purred. It was just that soft. 

“Ugh, stop purring. You’re not a cat.” Byakuya looked down at the man while leaning against the doorframe.

“Hey! That reminds me! Where is Clementine?”

“Not here.”

Hiro pouted, still rubbing the blanket to comfort him. “Aww, I wanted to finally meet her!”

“You’ll meet her if you stop slacking off , and actually bring up the rest of your things” Byakuya scoffed at the mess already accumulating on the floor.

Defeated, Hiro shuffled to the front door. Byakuya tossed Hiro his keys. “Lock my car when you unloaded everything. This one is for my car,” Byakuya said, while pointing at a silver key.  
“And, since I’m sure you won’t remember this,” Byakuya walked through the doorway. “I’ll write the key for the elevator on your hand.” 

Hiro was holding the silver key on the chain, staring at it thoroughly, when Byakuya returned to write the code on Hiro’s remaining hand. And with that, Byakuya closed the door. But Hiro didn’t leave. He just beamed at the place Byakuya was just standing.

Byakuya, of all people, had helped him. Had offered him a room in his home, had granted him shelter. No matter how hard Byakuya might pretend he doesn’t care about anyone, he doesn’t do a very good job of acting that way.

And with that, Hiro left to collect his other things, still smiling.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Byakuya and Hiro try to settle in with each other.

When Hiro had left to the car, Byakuya had tried to keep his apartment as clean as possible. The other man really left a look of random items sprinkled on the floor, and Byakuya wasn’t going to wait till the day when he accidentally steps on a Godzilla shaped tape dispenser. He dropped off all of the things he found in Hiro’s room, which included but not limited to a horse mask, a stuffed toy in the shape of a shark, and an empty jar labelled ‘for emergencies’.

Byakuya sighed, looking at all of the poor decisions Hiro had made with his money. He supposed it wasn’t too bad, but it was just that all of these things were so...expensive. Hiro wasn’t usually one to borrow money from, as he was always almost close to being broke himself. His massive debt, owed to the Kuzuryuu clan had been waved aside, which was lucky for him, but that doesn’t mean he wasn’t in other debts. Maybe staying here could make him just a tad bit more wise with his earnings.

A knock at the door signalled Hiro probably wanted to be let in. When Byakuya opened the door, however, he was not met with the cheery face of Yasuhiro. Instead, he was met with a jar filled with some green substance, and a decapitated baby head pressed against the glass.

“Jesus!” Byakuya stepped backwards, instinctively.

The jar, along with the boxes it was placed, turned suddenly, and the familiar dreadlocks and stubble appeared from behind it. “WHAT! Where?”

Byakuya hesitantly pointed to the jar. “What the hell is that?”

“Oh!” Hiro’s hands wrapped around the boxes, feeling for the jar. “I heard it’s good to defend against bad auras!”

Eyeing the jay again, Byakuya scrunched up his nose. “Someone is definitely lying to you.”

Hiro followed, walking through the doorway, and to his room. His room...since when did his room have a fluffy cat sitting on his bed? “Byakuya!”

Footsteps echoed in the hallway as Byakuya walked closer. “What? Don’t yell or my neighbours are going to file a noise complaint.”

“Look!” Hiro squealed, hopping over to where the cat lay. He reached his arm to pet her darker ears and face when he was interrupted.

“Don’t bother trying that.” Byakuya rolled his eyes. “She...hates...people.”

As Byakuya trailed off, he tried to comprehend the scene he was watching. Hiro was petting her, stroking her head, scritching behind her ears, and Clementine wasn’t clawing his face off. In fact, she was reciprocating! Weaving her tail around his wrist, nudging his hand when he stopped petting her.

“Well, she seems pretty friendly with me!” Hiro looked back the Byakuya and caught the sudden surprise on his face before returning to his (idk what to write).The man folded his arms in frustration, and leaned back onto the wall. “Tch, she’s only acting like that because she knows you’re going to annoy her to death if she ignores you.”

“Nah, I’m sure she likes-AH!”

As Hiro had tried to lift the furry beast, Clementine clawed at his stubble covered chin.

Byakuya scoffed. “Told you so. Now, the rules.”

“Oh, of course. Expected from the Former Ultimate Affluent Progeny himself. Bye bye, Clementine!” Hiro waved to the cat napping on his bed, and caught up with Byakuya, who had left the room.

Byakuya started speaking in a dignified matter, as he does. “So, firstly, I will not buy food for you, excluding dinners. If you want to go grocery shopping with me, you will have to supply your own money to pay me back.”

Byakuya had started to list things on his fingers. “Secondly, you will clean your own room, and wash your own laundry. Thirdly, if you break anything, you will pay for it in full. Although if I do manage to break something of yours with actual value, I will pay it off.” Byakuya had led them both into the main room.

“The others are just general rules, but I feel as though I need to remind you. Don’t make excessive noise, don’t construct or deconstruct anything, and don’t smoke weed in my apartment.”

Hiro raised his hand to object. “I don’t smoke weed, actually.”

Byakuya turned his head. “No one believes you when you say that.”

Hiro stepped over the back of a couch, and sat down, resting his feet on the coffee table. “Well, I used to, like, ages ago. But since then, I discovered a new way to relieve stress, a way that’s waaayyy better for your aura!”

Byakuya had started mixing himself a black coffee on the counter, despite it being nearly 6 p.m. “So that’s how you say-get your feet off of the coffee table-so that’s how you say your dealer went missing during the tragedy?”

“Yeah, but it’s mostly the first thing I said!” Hiro picked up the T.V remote, and his eyebrows perked up. “Hey! I should hook up my PS4.”

“Do whatever, just don’t break anything, but I’m going to something actually useful, like making dinner.” Byakuya had retrieved a pristine looking cookbook, and started flipping through it. 

Hiro jumped up from the couch and scrambled to the breakfast bar where Byakuya was cooking. “Oh oh! Can I-”

“No, you cannot help. You are going to ruin it.” Byakuya silenced him, and returned to task, retrieving a bag of pasta from the pantry. “You’re lucky I’m even doing this for you, and if you annoy me more, I’ll make you prepare your own food.” 

“Ah! Forgive me! I can’t cook!” Hiro wailed, as he clasped his hands together. Byakuya smirked. If only he knew he could barely, either.

“Well, I’ll tell you when dinner is ready. You can do what you want until then.” 

So Hiro left, while Byakuya made dinner. Even though it was only the first night, it all came so naturally, as if they’d been living together for years. In a way, they had. It’s always been Byakuya being standoff-ish, and Hiro knowing he was a big softy underneath all that edge.Years of fun teasing, but underneath that, a true friendship had emerged. How could it have not?

It was now 10 p.m. Hiro and Byakuya had both had dinner, gotten ready for bed, and had exchanged ‘goodnights’. The two had gotten into bed, although not the same one, and had started to doze off, Hiro a bit more comfy than Byakuya.

He’d already messed up the bedding, leaving the sheets and pillows strewn around at wonky angles, but Hiro didn’t mind. He was sleeping spread eagle, Clementine curled up next to him. It was so easy to fall asleep. After a day of heavy lifting, and also the fact the bed felt like lying on clouds, Hiro passed out almost as soon as he hit the mattress.

Byakuya, however, was having a harder job. Every time he was close to rest, he was interrupted by thoughts of him.

He did it mainly as an obligation. I mean, he was one of the leading figures in trying to rebuild the world better than before. He should at least be a somewhat decent person. But this was more than an obligation.

It felt a bit weird. He’d never done anything like this before. Sure, he’d risked his life to help Makoto and the Remnants at Jabberwock Island, but this felt more...committed. More...personal, attached. You could excuse it when he only risked his life to keep the Ultimate Hope alive, so Makoto could keep helping people, but where was the excuse in this case? He was only one guy. Byakuya couldn’t reason this out. In both cases, it was the same motive. He cared for his friends. And it is the worst having to confront that.

Waking up in the morning, it felt like his blanket had suddenly become the weight of the sky. Byakuya felt around for his glass, refusing to open his eyes. He heard the sounds of loud stomping and cabinet doors being slammed. I wonder who could be up, Byakuya sarcastically thought to himself. He dragged himself out of bed at a snail’s pace, and shuffled and scuffed his feet on the floor, too exhausted to walk properly.

As Byakuya walked to the kitchen, he could hear mumbling. He could hear things along the lines of ‘where is it’, and the rest seemed to be just grumbling.

“What the hell are you doing?”

“Oh! You’re awake! Good, good...” Hiro was perched on top of a chair, and rummaging around in all of the  
top-most cabinets. You could tell which ones he had scavenged, as he had left a trail of open cabinet doors behind him. “So, I was wondering-ah!”

Hiro began to wobble on the chair, but before he could reach the ground, Byakuya had reached out and grabbed his waist, steadying him. So, with a grin still on his face, Hiro spoke. “So, Togamicchi, I was wondering if you had any Choco-Chex.”

“Get down, for God’s sake. No, why would I ever buy children’s cereal? Why would you even think that I had it in the first place?” Byakuya had started to close all of the cabinets, albeit, much quieter than Hiro would’ve. “Dude, it’s the best cereal ever created! That’s why! How could you not have it?”

Byakuya shook his head. Christ, how the hell was he going to do with this man? Closing the last of the doors, he scanned the room, to make sure nothing else had been disturbed. Other than the dining chair that had been dragged into the kitchen, it all seemed the same. Thank God for that. But the dawn sun shining through the curtains told him some disappointing news.

“Well, since you rudely woke me up early, I may as well start getting ready for work. It’s not as if there’s much of a point in going back to sleep, anyways.” Byakuya started to walk back to his room, but the hand on his wrist stopped him. “Wait.”

“What now? Going to ask if I have chocolate milk now?”

“No! I already checked the fridge. It’s just...can I ride with you to work? Please?” It seemed Hiro had mustered up his most puppy-dog-eyes-looking eyes to ask this question. “My bad...about waking you up, really. I didn’t want to sleep in, because I know you don’t like it when I’m really late, so..I wanted to impress you, by getting ready super early!”

Byakuya was a little stunned. “Well, I thought that was implied. I must not have been clear enough.”

A shy smile appeared on Hiro’s face. “Wait, really? Doesn’t that cost like a ton?”

“Hmph, I doubt having an extra person in the car will cost anything at all.” Byakuya crossed his arm, which was a little difficult as Hiro was still clinging to his wrist.

“Ahhh! Bro, it’s gonna be soo cool driving with you everyday!” Hiro pulled Byakuya into another hug, holding him tightly. Byakuya was about to try and escape by saying they’d be late, but they had plenty of time. Now he had to deal with the fact Hiro’s an amazing hugger. Great.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Another chapter! Maybe a little short, for what I wanted, but I finished it none the less. I'm going to try and update this, but it may take a while. Hope you enjoy!


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kyoko asks Byakuya for a difficult task, while Hiro tries to impress Byakuya.

“Dude, hurry up!”

“Just hold on, I need to check something.”

“You’ve locked the door like ten times already!”

“It doesn’t hurt to be cautious.”

Byakuya was still at the door, while Hiro was waiting for him by the elevator. It had become a habit since Hope’s Peak to make sure his door was locked. Not just to protect himself from people who wanted to kill him, but mainly to escape her.

The drive to work was pretty par for the course, for Hiro and Byakuya, at least. Hiro was rambling on about another one of his theories, and Byakuya switched between using it as white noise, and poking holes in his ‘rock solid’ theories.

They arrived at the Future Foundation building, and took the elevator to the 14th Department. Makoto wasn’t there, probably managing the newly reformed Hope’s Peak. Kyoko had returned from her business trip and was in her office, flipping through files. Komaru and Toko were talking by Toko’s desk, Hina was still head of the 13th Department, but often came to check on the others.

Hina strolled up to the pair, eyeing them up and down. “Uhh, Byakuya, who is this?”

“What? It’s Hiro?”

Hina faked a shocked expression, raising a hand to her face. “Really? Because the Hiro I know is never on time!”

Hina stepped forward and grabbed Hiro by the edges of his jacket. His smile, beginning to fade. She narrowed her eyes. “Who are you, and WHAT have you done with Hiro?”

“WHAT!? I’m not Hiro? Then-then who am I!?” Hiro clamped his hands to his face. “Have I been a clone my whole life?”

Byakuya rolled his eyes.

“Hina, stop, you’re going to break him,” Byakuya looked at Hiro, and tried to pry his hands from his face. “God, you’re not a clone. Hina’s just joking.”

Hiro was silent for a second. “Y-yeah! I knew that! I was just...just playing along!”

Hiro donned his goofy smile, while Byakuya and Hina looked between them, knowing the truth. Hina elbowed Byakuya in the side. “So, what is the deal between you two? Are you rubbing off on him?”

“Well, he’s actually-”

“WE’RE ROOMMATES!” Hiro cheered, shouting loud enough the people from the neighbouring floors definitely heard him. “Byakuya’s the bestest friend ever!”

“Keep your voice down” Byakuya scolded, holding his hand over Hiro’s mouth.

The group then heard the distinct sound of a door being closed. “What’s going on? You all seem to be awfully loud.” 

Kyoko had left her office, and looked at them all with a stern look on her face.

“Excuse me, but these people find it necessary to be the loudest thing in the city,” Byakuya separated himself from the others, and sat down at his tidy desk. 

Kyoko rested her forehead in her hand. “Just...be quiet, at least. We have our monthly reports due soon, so you all need to be working on those.” 

A hush fell over the room, and the others all sat down at their respective desks. Kyoko could be intimidating when she wanted to be, and it made everyone listen to her. “Byakuya, have the statistics filed and on my desk by the end of the day.”

Byakuya nodded, and started to get to work. 

The day progressed sluggishly. Everyone had been aware of the work they needed to do, and were hunched over their computers, and typing away. Byakuya had been printing out all of their monthly statistics. He reached for an empty file to complete the work, but ended up just feeling the empty space on his desk where a file would lay. He grumbled to himself, must’ve run out. 

Byakuya left his desk, and made his way to the supply room. He went to flick the light switch on, but it only flickered for a second, before promptly blowing a fuse. Great, just what I need. Byakuya took his phone out, and shined the flashlight around the towering shelves of stationary. He cautiously made his way to the section he needed.

Byakuya guided his phone around the shelf before noticing it; a small spider weaving a web in the corner. And so, Byakuya made a sharp turn for the door, dropping his phone in the hurry. Maybe he didn’t need the files after all.

Byakuya strolled up to Hiro’s desk, trying to look like he hadn’t just had the shit scared out of him.

“Hiro, go get me another file.” 

“Really? Can’t you do it yourself?” Hiro whined.

“As you should be aware of, I am very busy. I don’t have the time.” Byakuya tried to head back to his desk. 

“You ain’t no more busy than me! If I’m going, you have to come with me!” 

Byakuya winced thinking about going back into that room, but he didn’t really have a choice. At least this way he wouldn't be alone. He had also left his phone there, which was somewhat important. “Ugh, fine.”

At the door, Byakuya was already hiding behind Hiro, although trying to be discreet about it. “The light blew a fuse, so it’s dark.” 

Hiro stepped forward and peered through the doorway. “But...it’s not? I see a light in there!”

“Oh, that’s my phone. I...misplaced it.”

“With the flashlight on?”

“...Yes.”

“Okay! Let’s go then.” Hiro stepped into the darkness, Byakuya following behind.  
“So, empty files. That’s..?”

“On the second to the left shelf.”

“R-right. I’m not scared, or anything. I’m-I’m especially not scared of the dark!”

Great, both of us are scared, Byakuya thought to himself.

“...oookaaayy. I got them.” He handed one to the blond. Byakuya thoroughly eyed it before taking it for himself. He turned his heel before halting. “Awww, is this why you were scared, Togamins?”

A small spider was crawling in between Hiro’s fingers, the man watching with a grin.

“Eughk, I have actual reason to be wary of spiders, unlike your irrational fear of ghosts. That’s why I have a cat, who kills spiders and other bugs. We have a mutually beneficial relationship.”

“Mutually beneficial? Dude, she’s your cat, not some business guy. And my fear of ghosts is a fear of the unknown, which is totally rational!”

No wonder he’s scared of everything, Byakuya scoffed to himself. “Well, I’m leaving, as I have an actual job I care about.”

“Oh, oh, yeah! Wait up!”

The work day was now coming to a close. The pinks and oranges of the early sunset were starting filtering through the windows, marking the days shorter and shorter as winter approaches. Byakuya had already packed up, and was now waiting by the elevator.

“Well? I don’t have all day.”

Hiro was frantically clawing at papers and files, and trying to jam them into his bag. Byakuya cringed silently. “Uh..yeah! I’m almost there!”

“No-wait, Hiro, just..just stop.” Byakuya reached out. “There’s a hole in your bag.”

Hiro spun around, only now noticing the trail of carnage he’d left behind him. “Ooohh....crap,”

“Christ, you need a new one already. I’ll find one suitable, and honestly, much better than yours.”

Hiro was stunned for a moment, but broke into a grin. “Aww, Togamins! You shouldn’t!”

You’re right, I shouldn’t, Byakuya was going to say, before he saw Kyoko open her office door. Her eyes panned down to Hiro, as he was trying to pick up the mess he’d made. “Byakuya? I need you for a moment.”

“Alright.” Byakuya said as he placed his briefcase on the floor, and walked over to the office.

“Close the door, will you?” Kyoko spoke softly. Her desk was also neatly packed up, ready to go home.

“Listen, about the party coming up?” Her pale eyes darted to the window looking out the main offices. “You should know it’s quite formal, and...”

“You want me to make sure Hiro doesn’t show up looking like a homeless troll?”

“Well in essence, yes.” The party was less of a party, and more of a celebration. All of the remnants would be attending, along with most of the employees at Future Foundation. Makoto was going to be giving a speech about the work they had done, and also announcing the reopening of Hope’s Peak, which was currently a secret. Overall, quite the important event. “The project at Jabberwork was a success, however, there are still some higher-ups suspicious of our...authenticity. It’s just best to project an image of formality, rather than...

Byakuya leaned against the door frame, arms crossed. “An image of inattentiveness? I see. And you want me because I’m the most put together, elegant, refined person you know?”

“Because you have a history of maintaining a prim-and-proper impression. And you two have seemed to be getting along lately.”

Byakuya’s back straightened. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

Kyoko smirked, bringing a gloved hand to her face. “Nothing. In any case, the party is only in 3 weeks, so make sure you make time for it. And there’s no debating, this is order as your boss.”

“Ugh, fine. But you owe me. It’s going to be quite some work, so this better not be for nothing.”

“Oh, it won’t be. Say goodbye to Hiro for me. I need to lock up.”

Byakuya nodded, as he said his goodbyes and met Hiro in the elevator, hands covering the hole in his bag.

The drive home was turning out to be swift, well as fast as a drive almost across to the other side of a city. It was at least quicker than the previous drive. During that time, there was a gradual shift from the busy inner city, sprawling with business men and women returning from their nine to five jobs, to the pristine and put together neighbourhoods of the upper-upper middle class. It was always comforting to Byakuya, reminding him of Pennyworth, or the time before the death game, when he and his siblings were friends. The good sparsely found in his family.

“So, what did Kyoko want to talk to you about?” Hiro asked, in between bites of Cheetos.

“Oh, nothing much. Just stuff about that party coming up. And where did you get those?” Byakuya responded, trying to sound nonchalant. Kyoko always had a way of getting on his nerves.

“Forgot to take them in last night. Want one?” Hiro said, as he offered the bag over. Byakuya instinctively scrunched up his nose. “...I’ll pass.”

“Your loss.” Hiro continued munching, the noise slowly wearing away at Byakuya. “What’s for dinner? Because if there’s nothing in the kitchen, I can just have those.”

Byakuya’s eye panned over to the passenger’s seat. “You can’t expect that to be at all enough.”

Hiro shrugged his shoulders. “It’s food, isn’t it? Oh, and if there is stuff, I wanna make something!”

Byakuya leaned back in his seat, and let out a sigh. “You are going to burn my entire building down if you try that.”

“Like you can cook at all, growing up with all those servants!” Hiro challenged.

“God, they weren’t servants. They got paid. And I can cook, actually. I’m not some man-child. I made that pasta for you last night.”

“Mmhm, and what else can you make?” Hiro smirked. God, why did he smirk like he knew everything. Hiro looked at him like he was looking directly into what Byakuya was feeling, and could tell when he was caught off guard. For being an idiot, Hiro really knows how to make Byakuya feel like he knows everything. And, God, it was infuriating.

Byakuya’s grip on the steering wheel tightened, and stared directly out the windshield, wary of what Hiro might see in his eyes. “Well, I can make dumplings...rice...and actually, I don’t need to prove anything to you.”

Hiro chuckled, and folded his arms. “Just as expected. Some Ultimate Perfection you are, can barely cook.”

“Oh, shut up.” Byakuya grumbled under his breath. He could take care of himself, he wasn’t some man-child. Well, when he first moved out of the Future Foundation dorms he might’ve been calling Pennyworth every night to ask questions. But that was in the past. Now was...different. Sure, he wasn’t great at cooking, and sure, he could only cook a handful of meals, but a year ago he could barely even do that. 

The rest of the drive was flooded with Hiro’s remarks about Byakuya’s cooking skills. “Well, if I’m so bad at it, how about you try to do it yourself, hm?

Hiro was silent, he seemed to be contemplating something. Uh oh. Hiro only really concentrates on something important. It seems like Byakuya is going to be shown up.

“I swear to God, if you put on that ridiculous apron just to make cup ramen, I’m kicking you out.”

“You have a problem with my apron?” Hiro was standing defensively behind the kitchen island, hands on hips, and an apron proudly on display. It must’ve been some kind of gag gift, as Byakuya couldn’t imagine anyone wearing unironically. It had that cheesy phrase, ‘Kiss the Cook’, plastered on the front, but that wasn’t even the worse part. The background design seemed to be of a very muscular man, donning nothing but a pair of tight Speedos. It was the most hideous thing Byakuya had ever seen.

“I thought you said you couldn’t cook.” Byakuya was leaning on the marble island, head propped up by his head. He scanned the supermarket bags sitting on the bench. “I’m honestly surprised you’ve managed to keep it secret for this long,”

“Well, I can’t cook really, really fancy things, but this is super easy!” Hiro winked. He started to unpack the bags, revealing a pack of bread rolls, and a packet of plasticy looking pepperoni. “Why'd you get that type? It’s awful,”

“It’s the cheapest, and it’s not actually that bad. You would know that if you tried!” He sighed as he broke into a soft smile. “God, I remember having it all the time growing up. Good times.”

“I have no interest in consuming your processed meat.” Byakuya sneered.

“Well, I guess I’ll just have to make yours without it!”

Byakuya rolled his eyes, and reached for the T.V remote, flipping to Netflix. He went and plopped down on the couch, untightening his tie, and uncuffing his sleeves. It was nice to not have to make dinner for once, without just getting take-out. 

It wasn’t too long before Hiro was lying down next to him, his arms hanging over the top of the couch. “So, what are we watching?”

“Hmm...well,” Byakuya scrolled through all of his suggested, which consisted mostly of thriller and mystery, all of which weren’t particularly engaging. He scrolled through his ‘continue watching’, and started scrolling through his ‘watch it again’ when-

“ ‘Watch it again’, The Little Mermaid?”

“Oh, erm...I’ve been rewatching the Disney Renaissance films,” Byakuya cleared his throat. “...the ones from the nineties.”

“Oh my God! I remember those! I saw The Lion King in an actual movie theatre for the first time!” Hiro elbowed Byakuya in the side. “Heh, didn’t know you were such a sucker for forbidden love stories.”

Byakuya groaned, but suddenly sat up straight. “Wait, is something burning?” 

He darted his head backwards, and sure enough, saw a faint line of smoke coming from the oven.

“Agh! I’ll get it!” Hiro jumped up, and scrambled into the kitchen. “Oookay, they’re fine. Everything’s fine, Byakuya!”

I can hear you, you don’t need to shout, Byakuya mentally rolled his eyes at the man fanning some slightly scorched bread rolls. “Heh, guess I forgot how fast fan-bake can be.”

“So, this was your big surprise?” Byakuya said, strolling over to the kitchen. “Yeah, they’re..uh...they’re pizza rolls. They’re really easy to make, had them a lot of them growing up. Y’know, mom working late n’ all.”

“Hmm..” They were still edible, if not a bit burned. “If you don’t make a mess, I’ll let you eat on the couch. Friday treat.”

Hiro’s eyes lit up, and the corners of his mouth were stretched into a wide smile. “Don’t get too excited, if you make a mess, you’ll be the one cleaning it up.”

“Aww, dude! You’re so sweet sometimes!”

“Say that again and I’m going to lose my appetite.”

“Eh, whatever. Come on, put on The Little Mermaid!” Hiro had made his way back to the couch, and Byakuya followed him, although taking much more care as to not leave crumbs anywhere. He put on the film, and turned down to look at what was on his plate. It was just a plain white bun, with a filling of cheese, and tomato paste. A bit basic nonetheless, but at least he could somewhat appreciate the gesture.

Byakuya lifted it up cautiously, and took a small bite. In his peripheral vision, he saw Hiro staring at him.

“...So?”

Byakuya gave a small shrug of his shoulders. “It’s fine, I suppose. There isn’t anything egregious about it, so that’s more than I was expecting.”

“Hell yeah! It’s super cheap, and super quick, so it’s super good.”

The two continued the meal in silence, just watching the screen. The plates eventually made their way to the coffee table, and would stay there for the night, the both of them too tired to clean up. Sometime, during the second half, Hiro’s head found its way onto Byakuya’s shoulder “Hey, Hiro?”

“Mmhh...yeah?”

“You have a crumb in your hair.” Byakuya stroked at Hiro’s hair, trying to get rid of it.

“Thanks...”

Byakuya remembered what Kyoko had said earlier that week, ‘You two seem to be getting along lately’. He gritted his teeth. Byakuya was glad the darkness hid his ears turning pink.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ok, I know Disney movies aren't on Netflix, but I really wanted them for this chapter, so I hope you don't mind! Also, trying to do longer chapters, so more of a slowburn.

**Author's Note:**

> Cute, fluffy concept for an underrated rarepair that I hope to turn into a long slowburn.


End file.
